Big Daddy Weave, a chart-topping contemporary Christian group, will present an evening of music and ministry at Fair Park Baptist Church in West Monroe on Aug. 1.

In an interview with The News-Star, lead singer Mike Weaver said the group wants to personally invite anyone going through a difficult time to come out for fellowship. People going through struggles are who the band seeks out.

"Maybe you're going thorugh a rough time or something, and you just need a break from the rough time. We all need that. We've through that kind of stuff over the past couple of years ourselves, and so I think it's just an opportunity for people to come out, get their praise on, remember that there's hope in the middle of their situation, and just have a great night together in the love of God," he said.

Weaver said the band started when they were classmates together at the University of Mobile in Alabama. The group led worship on campus "and it was like it never stopped. Next year, that'll be 20 years ago actually. We kept walking through the doors that were open."

He said it was a matter of God making the places for them to play, and that's happened for 20 years now.

He said it's not all sunshine and rainbows. The band is happy to be on tour, but it's hard to leave their families. He said being husbands and dads is the greatest blessing in the members' lives, but it's a real joy to get what they love to do as well.

"I can't believe we still get to do this as a job," Weaver said. "I always feel like somehow like we're going to be caught. I feel like we're getting away with it. ... I keep feeling like somebody's going to be like 'Alright, Weave. Well, time's up. Now you've got to get a real job.'"

He said this isn't just about music. It's about people.

"That's what God loves. God loves people in such a way that he would literally bleed for them, and we just want to continue to love what God loves, and that's people everywhere who are hurting," Weaver said.

He said the Lord brings everyone to the shows in some specific way.

"We're all in the same boat when it comes to life, and that's why I think we've sort of made our target people who are going through a rough time, people who need encouragement. Whether you believe in Jesus or not, we all go through times like that," Weaver said.

It's when you can feel the most alone, even at the top of your game.

""We just want to invite them out to tell them 'You're not alone. And you're not forgotten about. You are very loved,'" he said. Second chances never run out in in faith, and God meets people in need "right where they're at."

Each show, he said is different. It's a concert, and there's music, but sometimes they pause and pray with people individually. He said some of the most powerful moments come in those times when they see what God wants in that moment.

Weaver's favorite Bible verse is Proverbs 3:5-6. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." (New International Version)

"It's the one that I'm trying to live more consistently," Weaver said. He said he's seen what happens whens both when faith is put in God and when it's not. "We live in this place of fear and worry and regret and all these things."

It was his father's life verse as well, so Weaver has been able to quote it sine he was young. "It's something that we as a family have always been striving to live out," Weaver said.

About the band

Big Daddy Weave is one of the biggest headlining artists in Christian music. The band was the second-most-played artist on Christian AC-Monitored radio in 2014 and the recipient of multiple industry awards and nominations, including: Dove Awards, K-LOVE Fan Awards, Billboard Music Awards and ASCAP Awards.

Between 2012 and 2015, Big Daddy Weave achieved five straight No. 1 singles. “Redeemed” was certified gold by the RIAA in 2015. Big Daddy Weave has career album sales of more than one million units. Formed in 2002, Big Daddy Weave is: Mike Weaver, Jay Weaver, Jeremy Redmon, Joe Shirk and Brian Beihl.